Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker is only a few weeks away from his clash with Dricus Du Plessis. Whittaker, recently appearing on the UFC Vegas 75 post-fight show, was dripping with confidence ahead of the fight.
Whittaker pointed out that much of Du Plessis’ success has come from his opponents underestimating him, not from his own attributes, and Bobby Knuckles has the sweat and blood behind him to secure a win.
Robert Whittaker: UFC Opponents Keep Underestimating Dricus Du Plessis
“I guess if fights were won on paper, the entire sport would be very different. And I understand that’s not how fights are won, I understand the threat that Dricus can bring to the table and bring to me moving forward, to trying to achieve what I want.
I do believe that is one of the major reasons why Dricus has had the success he’s had, because he’s going up against these dudes and these guys are not giving him his credit, they’re not giving the respect his skill set deserves. I fully understand that I have bled and sweat and trained my butt off to take the war to him come UFC 290.”
Whittaker once held the UFC middleweight title, but lost on home soil to Israel Adesanya. Whittaker strung together enough wins over elite opposition to face Adesanya once more, losing that fight via split decision. Since then, Whittaker has once more mounted a title charge, and believes that the losses have only made him stronger.
“I think that’s why you see improvement in my game throughout the years and throughout my fights. Every fight, I believe, you’re seeing a new window into my game, into what I’m trying to bring.
You’re seeing new skill sets and skill sets that I previously had better than the last time, and that’s because I’m always trying new things, I’m always trying to better the next skill set.
I’m doing lots of grappling, I’m doing lots of wrestling, I’m trying to switch up my boxing, and that’s what I believe takes me to new levels, and Dricus is going to see a new level once again.”
With Adesanya’s next title defense set for UFC 293 in Sydney, Robert Whittaker’s home, it’s not unreasonable to expect to see him looking forward a couple of months. Despite this, Whittaker insists that he isn’t looking past Du Plessis.
“I definitely am not looking past Dricus. He’s too dangerous and the fight has too much gravity in July, and all my focus and attention and dedication is going into July. But I’ll tell you one thing: If I’m healthy and able, I will take a fight.
At any date, any time. I’ll take a fight two days after July if I’m healthy and able. So yeah, let’s get through July, and yeah, I’m in the fight game, you know? I’m in the business.”
